VOLUME 30, NO1, FEB 2008

Drinking Water Quality of Swat District

Drinking water samples were collected from different localities of Swat District and investigated for the physical and chemical parameters. The findings of the research work show that; pH was 6.8-8.1, electrical conductivity was in the range of 0.001-0.43 mS, total hardness was 70-275 mg/ L, alkalinity as CaCO3 was 58.8-347.9 mg/ L, Chloride was 4.5-35 mg/ L, sulphates was in the range of 3.45-6.54 mg/ L, nitrite was 0.00123 – 0.0086 mg/ L, nitrite was 0-4.55 mg/ L, Phosphate was 0.019 – 0.956 mg/ L and fluoride was 0.0012 – 0.0096 mg/ L. Iron was in the range of 0.1 – 0.956 mg/ L, copper 0.147- 0.780 mg/ L, manganese 0.123 – 0.463 mg/ L, sodium 1- 5.0 mg/ L and potassium 0 – 1.5 mg/ L. The values were compared with the standard of WHO and it was found that all parameters are within the permissible limit and hence cause no harmful effect to the human healthread more

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SIRAJ AHMAD ,FAZLULLAH KHAN BANGASH ,SULTAN ALAM ,

Kish Beneficiation by Flotation

This paper describes a bench scale investigation on the preparation of flake graphite concentrate from the steel making waste, obtained from Pakistan Steels, Karachi. The waste initially containing 65 % graphitic carbon has been upgraded by froth flotation technique to produce graphite concentrate containing 92.14 % graphitic carbon with 96.46 % recovery. This communication presents the results on the optimization of flotation parameters like pH, pulp density and reagents etc.read more

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KAMRAN RAZA KAZMI ,MOHAMMAD ARIF BHATTI ,ANSAR MEHMOOD ,MOHAMMAD SHAFIQUE ANWAR ,

Study of Atmospheric Pollution Due to Vehicular Exhaust at the Busy Cross Roads in Peshawar City – (Pakistan) and its Minimizing Measures

Studies on the atmospheric pollution caused due to vehicular exhaust at the busy cross roads in the Peshawar city were carried out. The major gaseous air pollutants i.e Carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and hydrocarbon levels during 0700 to 1900 hrs were studied at 10 different locations of Peshawar city with maximum traffic density. Nine out of ten locations were having average carbon monoxide levels above the permissible National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The carbon monoxide level ranged between 9 and 24 ppm, whereas its permissible level is 09 ppm. Similarly nitrogen oxides levels were found higher than the NAAQS of 0.15 ppm at all the sites. The nitrogen oxides level ranged between 1.7 and 3.5 ppm. With the exception of General Bus Stand, there is no indication of sulphur dioxide in rest of the locations studied. The concentration of hydrocarbons was found to be negligible in the studies undertaken. On the basis of these studies, it has been concluded that the higher levels of carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides in the ambient air cause deleterious impacts on the human health. Recommendations and suggestions to minimize the harmful effects of the gaseous pollutants due to vehicular exhaust are also described.read more

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ABDUR RAHMAN KHAN ,MUMTAZ KHAN ,JEHANGIR SHAH ,TABRAIZ ANWAR ,MUHAMMAD TEHSEEN ASLAM ,

Studies on Synthesis and Properties of Urea formaldehyde Adhesives

A low cost synthesis of urea formaldehyde adhesive from local raw materials was developed. Urea (100g) was dissolved in 37 % formalin (150ml) and transferred to flask. With NaOH solution, the pH was adjusted to 8.5 and refluxed for two hours on water bath until required viscosity was obtained. The viscosity (180-280cps), solid contents (45-63 %), density (1.80-2.25g/ ml), pH (7.0-8.5) and shelf life (4-115 days) were measured to judge the level of quality. The parameters: viscosity, density, solid contents, appearance and pH were found to be compatible with the standard values. Moderate pot-life and tensile strength on application to wood were found to be encouragingread more

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ANSAR MAHMOOD SHAIKH ,IRSHAD KHOKHAR ,MUHAMMAD SHAFIQUE ANWAR ,HIFZA AKHTAR ,MUHAMMMAD NAEEM KHAN ,

Geo Hydro Chemical and Isotopic Study of the Effects of Tannery Effluents on the Ground Water Quality in Kasur Area

Isotopic technique was employed to study ground water recharge mechanism and the effect of tannery effluents on the quality of ground water in Kasur area. Water samples collected were shallow ground water, deep ground water, canal water, rain water and pond water. The physicochemical parameters (pH, dissolved oxygen and electrical conductivity) were measured in the field while stable isotopes of 2D and 18O were analyzed by using GD-150 gas source isotope ratio mass spectrometer. Depleted isotopic contents of δ2D and δ18O are characterized by canal recharge; enriched isotopic values are associated with rains recharge and intermediate values show the mixing of water from different sources. The shallow ground water had depleted isotopic values and is being recharged by the canal. However, isotopic signature of shallow groundwater in the surroundings of the pond has been modified by the seepage of the pond water. The deuterium excess values show the effect of evaporated pond water and these values increase as the distance from the pond increases. Electrical conductivity values and chloride contents decreased along the depth. The deep groundwater that is termed as the native groundwater is being recharged by rains at piedmont           area/ bedrock outcrops. Results indicate that the quality of shallow ground water has been deteriorated in the vicinity of stagnant pond water but quality of deep groundwater is good. Chromium is absent in deep ground water, its penetration is limited up to a maximum depth of 20 m.read more

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MUHAMMAD NAEEM ,ASRAR AHMED KAZI ,JAVID IQBAL ,SALMA REHMAN ,

Treatment of Electroplating Effluent

Effluent samples were collected from electroplating industry at kot lakhopat Lahore. The samples were physically and chemically analyzed for different parameter and metals concentrations. The concentration of all metals including chromium, canduim, nickel manganese and iron were than threshold limit. Chromium is environmentally hazadousb and carcinogenic. The electroplating effluent with high chromium concentration has been treted through chemical precipitation (CP). The treatment of chromium is pH dependent. The experiment results showed that CP process has successfully eliminated chromium from electroplating effluent. The percentage removal is 95% chromium leaving less than 0.1 0mg/L Cr (VI) in filtrate.read more

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FARZANA BASHIR ,SADDIQA TUFAIL MUGHAL ,TAYYABA AFTAB ,TAHIRA SHAFIQUE ,

COD Reduction from Aminoplast Industry Effluents

Wastewater from an aminoplast industry located at industrial Estate Gadoon Amazai was chemically evaluated for parameters like; pH, turbbity, sulphide, suspended solid, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5). It was found that the effluents contain very high COD (23490 – 28410 mg O2/ L) Which render it harmful for aquatic life when discharge into the near by water channels without any treatment techniques like air stripping, Ph adjustment, flocculation and chemical adsorprtion were employed the treatment techniques. The results were found promising which suggest that a combined strategy based on the above techniques can be adopted for the treatment of the toxic nature of this industrial effluent. A combined treatment strategy incorporating the results of the present study and the polishing treatment technique is proposed for better resultsread more

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JAHANGIR SHAH ,MUHAMMAD TAHSEEM ASLAM ,MUMTAZ KHAN ,ABDUR RAHMAN KHAN ,

Effect of Multi Source Direct Dye Application and Important Process Variables on the Tensile Strength (Warp Wise and Fill Wise) of the Denim Fabric

Dyes are intensively coloured substances used for the coloration of various substrates. They are retained in these substances by physical adsorption or by the formation of covalent chemical bonds. The general reasons of using direct dyes for cellulosic fibers are their low costs and the simplicity of applications being water soluble. This paper endeavors to optimize the application of the direct black dyes, different dose levels, treatment temperatures and treatment time on the fabric for superlative results. The results revealed that all the above variants had non significant affect on the tear strength (warp and fill wise) of the denim fabric.read more

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SHEIKH MUHAMMAD NAWAZ ,MUHAMMAD QAMAR TUSIEF ,BABAR SHAHBAZ ,MUHAMMAD RASHID ,

High Intensity Magnetic Separation Studies of Low Grade Chromium Ore

Studies were undertaken to beneficiate a low grade indigenous chromium ore of Muslim Bagh, Balochistan, Pakistan using high intensity dry magnetic separation (HIDMS) technique. The different parameters of magnetic separation such as intensity of the magnetic field, particle size of the feed, feed rate and number of operations were optimized to obtain maximum grade and recovery of chromium.  The ore containing 28 % Cr2O3 was upgraded to a concentrate assaying more than 40 % Cr2O3 with 90 % recovery.  The final concentrate produced met all the specifications of the chemical grade chromite concentrate.read more

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MUHAMMAD SHARIF ANWAR ,KAMRAN RAZA KAZMI ,MUHAMMAD ARIF BHATTI ,

Reaction Kinetic Model for Dissolution of Low Grade Bauxite Rock in Sulfuric Acid

Dissolution kinetics of low-grade bauxite rock in sulfuric acid solution is studied. Using a known acid concentration and particle size of the sample, the influence of various reaction temperatures has been found in order to expound the dissolution kinetics of low-grade bauxite rock. The results show that the dissolution rate increases with increasing concentration of the acid and temperature. A kinetic model is suggested to illustrate the dissolution process of bauxite rock analyzing the kinetic data. The dissolution curves are evaluated in order to test the validity of reaction kinetic models for liquid-solid systems. The experimental data have been analyzed by graphical and statistical methods and it is found that the dissolution of bauxite in the acid is controlled by chemical reaction, i.e.,  . The apparent activation energy of the dissolution process has been found to be 79.3297 KJmol-1 over the reaction temperature range from 348 to 378 K.read more

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ZAFAR IQBAL ,MUHAMMAD ASHRAF ,